Lots of people out there know that organic produce is pretty much the bomb diggity compared to regular produce; it just happens to also be little pricier sometimes. Originally many just thought that organic produce was beneficial to your health because organic produce isn't grown with conventional pesticides, fertilizers and so on. Therefore organic produce eliminates your exposure to pesticides and toxic chemicals that can have a severe impact on your health (we're talking cancer and all sorts of awful things).

Recent research shows that not only is organic produce good for you because of all the crap that it removes, but it is also good for you because of all the crap it includes. As it turns out, organic produce has recently been proven to show much more nutritious value as the produce is usually higher in nutrients, vitamins and antioxidants than non-organic produce.

Boom.

{However, you always have to remember to look for the USDA certified organic seal...that's when you know you really have an organic item on your hands!}

So what's a shopper to do when they want to eat a little healthier but realize that their budget doesn't quite allow it? Well first off, they need to pat themselves on the back for wanting to eat healthier to begin with (pat pat). Then they need to see what their budget will allow. Always strive for organic produce before you start working in organic canned goods, snacks, dairy and meats into your budget.

Even if you can't afford to purchase all of your produce organically, you can at least use this handy list of items that is considered to be the most toxic produce items out there, better known as the Dirty Dozen Plus. In other words, these items are the ones that you really, really want to purchase organically as study after study (they update regularly) shows that these items always have the highest traces of pesticides and chemicals.

Ew.

The produce items you should purchase organically.

Strawberries

Grapes

Apples

Peaches

Nectarines

Bell Peppers

Hot Peppers

Cherry Tomatoes

Cucumbers

Spinach, Kale and Collard Greens

Sweet Peas

Potatoes

Hot Peppers

Blueberries

Most of us probably are not going and purchasing all of these items at once, especially since many of these are seasonal and only available (and yummy) at certain times of the year. Therefore, with a little wiggle room in your budget you can work in those items that you do need. Strive to purchase these items organically and then if your budget has some more wiggle room, strive for all organic produce. If your budget includes even more wiggle room, work your way into the category that you feel is next important (like dairy).

Hopefully, you have some wiggle room for this list above (but we know not everyone has room to wiggle).

Sasha is the owner and founder of The Mushy Mommy, a natural mother and baby boutique and The Mushy Mommy Village. She is a SAHM who works hard at living as minimal and unprocessed as possible, but never claims perfection. Her mission is to inspire, encourage, enlighten and empower mothers all over to feel good about their choices, to make healthy choices and to enjoy motherhood and all of its beauty and chaos.

Perhaps one of my favorite homemaking topics is always about grocery shopping and budgets! I don’t know why, but this conversation always inspires me to see how I can change my ways or it sometimes even makes me proud of being able to keep our grocery budget near the amount that we tend to.

Everyone has different ideas of what is a “good” grocery food budget and that is okay because every family has different needs and wants. Honestly, there’s no right or wrong answer here in terms of budgets and where to shop - but there’s always some handy tips to share with one another.

I have found that these tips (some that are widely known tips) really do help with sticking to a clear budget and without getting distracted by extras.

Let’s face it, motherhood isn’t easy. We often need all of the unicorn magic, fairy dust and rainbows to make it through each day. But since those things don’t really exist, I’ll just settle on some good oils, lots of prayers and a cheap glass of wine.

When it comes to oils and motherhood there are countless oils we can use for our day. Whether it’s oils for emotions, oils for sleep or even oils for our teething babies, there are many ways in which we can have a tool box of support for our day to day role as MOM.

So today I am going to highlight my top 10 oils that I insist every mother should have on hand. There are so many wonderful oils and several that I have left off here, but dang these are mostly just the oils that will help bring you some peace, sleep and sanity. And a little backup for all the in betweens.

I thought I would always be that mom…

You know, the mom who had kids that ALWAYS looked super put together and stylish. Maybe not always in the fanciest of clothes (because #bills), but definitely in the cutest clothes from hip boutiques and with beautiful bows and perfect hair.

And then life happened.

And by life, I really just mean I had three kids within 5 years. Which translates to a whole lot of chaos if we’re being real here.

There are days where we leave our house and I’m thinking to myself, “Damn I hope we don’t run into anyone we know.” Or I’m already mentally preparing myself to tell whatever human I run into the truth - these heathens demanded on dressing themselves and today I didn’t care because it was one less battle to win.

Want to know more about a particular topic? Have a product you want us to try? Need advice on how to begin cloth diapering?

We are always ready to hear from our readers! Shoot us a message with your questions and thoughts and we'll happily get back to you as soon as possible.

themushymommy@gmail.com

DISCLAIMER: This is a support site that does not claim to make any medical claims. It simply gives personal testimonials and "possible" solutions. Please always talk to your care provider before making any decisions regarding your health or your family's.